The Las Vegas Summer League is officially off to the races! The NBA’s young talent takes to the floor to prove what it can do in hopes of carving out a professional path for itself—collectively and individually—with plenty on the line. Today’s slate will begin at 4:00 p.m. ET, with a matchup between the Boston Celtics and Memphis Grizzlies. This will be the first action in Las Vegas for both teams, although the Grizzlies participated in the Salt Lake City variation.
DraftKings Sportsbook is listing the Memphis Grizzlies as 4.5-point favorites and -198 on the moneyline ahead of the summer league opener. The Boston Celtics hold +164 odds on the moneyline with the game total set at 187.
Celtics vs. Grizzlies Breakdown:
Every NBA team has a slightly different approach to the summer league. Some teams give their most notable talents high levels of minutes, while some go over the top to protect their young stars. All teams compete to win, but some organizations still coach like it is a playoff setting, while others are willing to prioritize deep rotations at the benefit of development.
The Boston Celtics’ summer league roster has an intriguing mix of young talent and experience. Last year’s 30th overall pick, Baylor Scheirman, will be expected to help run the show, while this year’s 28th overall pick, Hugo Gonzalez, will show what he can do for the first time. The early clips surfacing from summer league practice have built some excitement for the Real Madrid product with his activity and athleticism jumping off the page.
Jordan Walsh is also entering his third NBA season and is still looking to crack the Celtics’ regular rotation. Kendall Brown and Jalen Bridges each also have some brief NBA experience and will need to show it. Boston also added UC San Diego standout guard Hayden Gray, who shot 41.8% from beyond the three-point arc, and notched 3.3 steals per game last year. Isaiah Wong has had some success in the summer league before, but is still looking to carve out an NBA role for himself, and Amari Williams will enter as the biggest player on the roster after averaging 10.9 points and 8.5 rebounds per game last year at Kentucky. Kenny Lofton will also make his return to the summer league and is sure to be a fan favorite as he looks to create another NBA opportunity for himself.
The Grizzlies will be headlined by Jaylen Wells, who is an early “too good for summer league” candidate. He finished third in Rookie of the Year voting last year after averaging 10.4 points and 3.4 rebounds while shooting 35.2% on three-point attempts. Cam Spencer will also be entering with one season of NBA experience after showing some encouraging flashes in the final weeks of the season. GG Jackson II has two years of NBA experience under his belt, although a broken foot sidelined him last year. This will be a nice opportunity for him to get back to looking like himself, and the South Carolina product will also have a chance to earn the “too good” label with an ability to get buckets in a way that could shine in this setting.
Joining the summer league veterans will be an interesting collection of young players. There will be plenty of eyes on the 11th overall pick, Cedric Coward, as he takes the floor for the first time. While Coward has all the physical tools and has shown flashes of being an NBA caliber wing, his lack of experience against high-level talent makes this summer league experience crucial for the 21-year-old.
Armando Bacot will be the best rebounder on most floors that he walks on and is coming off a season of averaging 18.2 points and 9.5 rebounds per game at the G League level after an impressive collegiate career at North Carolina. 48th overall pick Javon Small was already inked to a two-way contract, and Zyon Pullin will be playing his second season on a two-way deal with the Grizzlies. Aaron Estrada also showed some nice flashes at the Salt Lake City summer league and is worth keeping an eye on.
Grizzlies vs. Celtics Pick:
The unpredictability of the summer league has me targeting underdogs at a greater rate, but this is a matchup in which I believe oddsmakers got it right. I like the Grizzlies to get the outright victory to kick off the Las Vegas summer league and cover the 4.5-point spread on DraftKings Sportsbook.
There is more notable solidified NBA talent on this Grizzlies roster, and more guys whose style of play seems set to flourish in this type of setting. While there are real stakes on the line, summer league is essentially high-level pickup basketball with groups of players without much experience playing together. Memphis will also have the key advantage of having three games of action under their belt out in Salt Lake City, which should benefit them in getting out to a strong start tonight.
Expect Jaylen Wells and GG Jackson II to lead the charge for the Grizzlies, and for Memphis to have too much firepower for Boston to match. While the Celtics should still put up a respectable effort, I am backing Memphis to grab full control of this game as it progresses and pushing it well beyond the 4.5-point spread before the game’s conclusion.
